A trail navigation application to help you locate and traverse any trail in your local area.
Within my framework of Discover, Define, Create, and Test I connected with users about their trail experience to discover the user's goals and determine the tasks needed to accomplish those goals. I explored the user further by conducting user research to gain insight into their needs. I applied UX methodologies to define the tasks needed to accomplish those goals on the trail. I created wireframes and a prototype for a visual representation of those tasks. And finally, I tested the product to find gaps in the application's user interface and corrected any issues that arose. I've broken out my framework phases in more detail below.
I reached out to users through a survey questionnaire to gain insights into their behavior (frustrations, goals, etc.) when partaking in activities out on the trail.
I generated pessimistic questions to understand the challenges facing the long-term future of the product.
Create a forum to allow users to share their trail experiences with their friends?
Provide users a map to track themselves without the need of a cell signal to get around the trail?
Build out a feature that allows the user to track their workouts?
Help keep users safe while they are out exploring the trail?
I expanded my thinking by asking, “How Might We…” questions to change my perspective from thinking about problems to finding opportunities within the product.
Make connecting with other users easy?
Make navigating the trail easier?
Get users to use our app more often?
Become the go to app for outdoor activities on the trail?
Reward users for using the application?
Motivate users to engage in exercise on the trail?
Make the app appeal to users of all skill levels?
Make paying trail fees, parking fees, etc… more convenient for users?
I created a customer map to understand users’ goals and discover the tasks/steps they need to complete to achieve those goals. By defining the users' goal I can then work backward from that goal straight to the customer to gain a better understanding of what their needs are to accomplish those goals.
After completing the activity, locate the trail detail’s screen for the trail you are rating
Engage in an activity on the trail you are rating
Use the explore function on the menu bar to locate the desired trail you want to rate
Create account
Download app
I created an effort impact matrix to determine the best tasks to focus on for maximum value with minimum effort.
I created personas to get a deeper understanding of the users’ needs and goals to build empathy with target users and focus on their world.
I formed a competitive analysis of competing products on the market to understand how those products solved similar user challenges. And to take note of any unique solutions, and determine if there are any consistent UI patterns across other competitors’ products. I will also take note of UI patterns that are illogical, or confusing and avoid using them in my design.
Fun way to guide users through selecting and personalizing the app’s features.
Collectible achievements are a great way to encourage engagement.
Activity type section is easily noticed because of shape differentiation, and pops from other content on screen.
I like how this app makes safety a priority when signing up for an account.
With the photo cropped on the right, it’s easy to understand that the list of trails are side-scrolling.
I developed wireframes to propose elements and visualize how the information would be organized for those screens. And to show how exploratory solutions would flow for the app’s users.
Option for single-signin with Apple, Facebook, and Google. Maybe have fewer options?
Option for for a swipe-up map. Might be to complicated.
Option for no map at all. Having a map might be useful for getting a bigger picture at-a-glance.
List the most important information first. See survey questions responses for better insight into what the user values most.
A visualization of the trail's route outlined on a map of the trail's area.
A customizable list for the user's unique preferences on a list of trail-related topical information.
Account-related information. Add friends and follow other users location.
I created a prototype to help me understand how well my concept matches what users' wanted via the feedback I acquired during the discover and define phases of my UX research process.
View Prototype
I created a brand guide and design system to ensure all visual and messaging elements of the brand are consistent across all channels and touchpoints, to streamline the design process, accommodate the growing needs of the brand, clarify key messaging points, and help differentiate the TrailFindr brand from its competitors. Check out the Brand Guide.
By conducting a usability test, I gained valuable insights that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. This allowed me to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of how users interact with the application in real-life scenarios. The test revealed multiple design flaws that could have adversely affected the user experience. To improve the application's usability, I addressed some of the most significant user pain points that emerged during the testing process. In the following sections, I will detail these issues and explain how I resolved them.
7 of 8 test participants could not find the location of the, “track your fitness activity” feature on the app’s user interface.
I observed 88% of test participants repeatedly checked the Trail Details location to try and complete this task there.
Add a button/link to track an activity on the Trail Details screen below the trail description section.
Menu bar icons were not easily understood by the test participants.
Add title text under each icon to denote what the icon means to reduce confusion.
The “You are here” pin on the map on the home screen is hard to locate.
Make this indicator more visible by using a contrasting color that is easily noticed against the muted background. And added a pulse animation to the pin to have it stand out even further.
Test participants had a hard time finding the connect with friends button, it was not visible to them on the Profile screen.
I noted that 5 of the 8 participants would scroll below the green button with the words “Connect with friends” and then scroll back past the target button again. They would then leave the profile screen to search in a different part of the prototype to complete their task. They would eventually return to the profile section and find the button to complete their task.
I move the connect with friends button to the top of the current section. The tab structure confused several test participants and I removed it from the UI and added some white space around the button to make it more noticeable.
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